Beacon Financial (NYSE:BBT) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Beacon Financial (BBT) from a "hold" to a strong sell, while several brokers cut price targets; the market consensus remains a "Hold" with an average target of $31.75.
• Beacon reported a Q1 EPS of $0.70 versus the $0.83 estimate and revenue of $214.7 million, and analysts forecast about 3.13 EPS for the current year.
• The board authorized a $50 million share buyback (about 1.9% of shares), while an insider sold 17,333 shares; institutional investors own roughly 83% of the stock.

Beacon Financial (NYSE:BBT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Beacon Financial from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Beacon Financial from $35.00 to $33.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Beacon Financial from $36.00 to $33.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Beacon Financial from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Hovde Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $30.00 price objective (down from $33.00) on shares of Beacon Financial in a report on Friday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.75.

Beacon Financial Stock Performance

NYSE BBT opened at $28.90 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.88 and a beta of 0.55. The company's fifty day moving average is $30.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.08. Beacon Financial has a 52-week low of $22.81 and a 52-week high of $32.83.

Beacon Financial (NYSE:BBT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $214.72 million during the quarter. Beacon Financial had a return on equity of 9.02% and a net margin of 6.97%. Equities research analysts forecast that Beacon Financial will post 3.13 EPS for the current year.

Beacon Financial declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 29th that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Beacon Financial

In other news, insider Michael W. Mccurdy sold 17,333 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.04, for a total transaction of $538,016.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 25,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $793,227.20. This trade represents a 40.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.09% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Beacon Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Beacon Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $16,448,000. Grace & White Inc. NY acquired a new stake in shares of Beacon Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,914,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Beacon Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,714,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new stake in shares of Beacon Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,179,000. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Beacon Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,921,000. 83.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Beacon Financial

Truist Financial Corp. operates as a financial holding company, which engages in the provision of banking services to individuals, businesses and municipalities. The firm offers a variety of loans and lease financing to individuals and entities, including insurance premium financing, permanent commercial real estate financing arrangements, loan servicing for third-party investors, direct consumer finance loans to individuals, credit card lending, automobile financing and equipment financing. It also markets a range of other services, including deposits, life insurance, property and casualty insurance, health Truist Financial Corp.

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